Letter-file.



No. 673,248; Patented Apr. 30, l90l.

F. A. EUMANDS.

LETTER FILE.

(Application filed Feb. 27. 1901.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

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No. 673,248. Patented Apr. 30, l90l.

r. A. EDMANDS.

LETTER FILE.

(Application men mi. 27. 190:.)

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

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LETTER-FILE.

SPEGIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 673,248, dated April 30, 1901. Application filed February 27, 1901. Serial No. 49,082. (No model.)

To a/IZ whont it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK A. EDMANDS, of Newton, in the county of Midd leseX and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in LetterFiles, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its object to provide a simple and convenient device for filing and storing letters and other documents; and it consists in the improvements which I will now proceed to describe and claim.

Of the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 represents a perspective view of the box or casing member of my improved letter-file, the cover being opened. Fig. 2 represents a top view of a portion of the box. Fig. 3 represents a section on line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4: represents a section showing a portion of the cover and one of the studs attached thereto for engagement with the socket shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 represents a sectional view of a portion of the box, showing the cover closed and secured by the said stud and socket. Fig. 6 represents a side view of one of the card members of the filing device.v Fig. 7 represents a perspective view of the member shown in Fig. 6 with letter-sheets attached thereto.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the figures.

In the drawings, (1 represents a box, to which is hinged a cover b. The end wall of the box opposite to which the cover is hinged is interrupted, forming an opening 0, Fig. 1, extending to the bottom of the box. At this opening is attached a metal plate (1, from which rise tubular standards 6 e, these standards being rigidly attached to the plate (1 and serving to engage orifices in the card members, hereinafter described, to hold said card members, with the letters attached thereto, in place in the box a.

f represents a plate affixed to the swinging edge of the cover I). To this plate are rigidly attached studs 9 g, adapted, when the cover is moved to a closed position, to enter the tubular standards 6 6. One of the studs is notched or grooved at g, so that when it is inserted in the corresponding standard 2 it can be locked therein by means of a latch h, which is pivoted at z' to the plate d and has projections h 71/, adapted to enter the notch g when the latch is swung inwardly from the position shown in Fig. 2, thus preventing the loose or accidental opening of the cover. The latch h is provided with an n pwardly-projectiug ear 71, whereby it may be manipulated. The cover has an outer section b, to which the plate f is attached, said section being connected by a hinge-joint with the main portion of the cover, so that the studs g are flexibly connected with the cover and can therefore freely enter the tubular standards 6, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 5.

j represents one of the card members of the filing device. This is made of a sheet of relatively stiff material, such as cardboard or fiberboard, and is provided with perforations 7c 70, adapted to receive the standards e e of the box, said perforations being formed in an ear j, formed on the upper edge of the card, the car being formed to project from the box through-the opening 0. The surface of the ear between the perforations 7c 7r. may contain the name or initial letter of the name of the writer or writers of the letters which are filed on the card, as hereinafter described, and as these ears project outside of the body of the box they are in convenient position for inspection. Y

m represents a cord which extends from the front side of the card j and is adapted to be threaded through an orifice n in said card, its free end being passed along the back of the card and engaged with the latter by any suitable means, such as by a knot m, formed on the cord, and a notch m formed in the lower edge of the card. The cord is preferably elastic and is of such length that when extended the knot can be slipped into the notch m and will then be held in engagement with the end of the notch by the clasticity of the cord. I prefer to attach the cord to the back of the card at 0 in any suitable way, such as by tying a knot on the end of the cord and passing the cord through an orifice near the center of the upper portion of the card, the orifice being smaller than the knot, which bears against the front side of the card. The cord may pass from the point of attachment 0 along the back side of the card, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 6,

to an orifice 19, through which it is passed and from which it extends along the front of the card to the orifice n.

The letter-sheets to be filed are provided with perforations adapted to coincide with the orifices p and n in the card, when the sheet to be filed is laid upon the front of the card, and the cord is threaded through the perforations in the sheet and through the orifice n. Its free end is secured in the manner above described, thus securing the, sheet or sheets to the card, as indicated in Fig. 7.

The flexibility of the material of the box and its cover is such that the standards e'and studs g can sway sufficiently to permit the movement of the studs into and out of the standards without sticking or binding, this movement being facilitated by the jointed outer section b of the cover, which permits the outer ends of the studs to move freely in the outer ends of the standards when the studs are entering and leaving the standards.

The latch h is prevented from swinging too far outwardly by a stop q, arranged to engage an ear k on the latch h and limit the outward motion of the latter, as shown in Fig. 2. a

I claim- 1. A letter-file comprising a box having an' opening in one side, and a tubular standard in said opening, a cover hinged to the box and having at its swinging end a notched stud adapted to enter the tubular standard, and a latch or locking device on the bottom of the box, to hold said standard in the stud.

2. A letter-file comprising a box having an opening in one side, tubular standards in said opening, and a cover hinged to the box at the side opposite that which has the opening and having studs at its swinging edge adapted to enter the tubular standards, the outer portion of the cover to which the studs are attached being hinged or flexibly connected to the main portion.

3. A letter-filemember consisting of a relatively stiff card having an ear on its upper edge, and a cordattached to the card and sheet or sheets laid thereon, the card having also means for securing the free end of the cord.

5. A letter-file member consisting of a relatively stifi card provided with standard-receiving perforations near its upper edge and with cord-receiving perforations below the standard-receiving perforations, said perforations being relatively arranged substantially as shown and a cord secured at one end to the back of the card and adapted to be threaded through the cord-receiving perforations and through a sheet or sheets laid on the front of the card, and means for securing the free end of the cord.

6. A letter-file comprising a box having an opening in one side extending to the bottom of the box, for the reception of ears on filingcards in the box, and card-engaging standards in said opening.

7. A letter-file comprising a box having an opening in one side, card-engaging standards in said opening, and a filing-card having an ear formed to project through said opening and perforated to receive said standards.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

FRANK A. EDMANDS.

Witnesses:

O. F. BROWN, A. D. HARRISON. 

